Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

[Terry Olson]

I'm new to the site - and I can see there's plenty of traffic, experience, and expertise here.<br /><br />I just bought a 1983 Lund 18' side console boat (Mr. Pike model - 50 Mercury with power tilt - for those who might like to know). I plan to either repaint above the water line or simply remove the paint and leave it natural. I know this looks good on some boats but I have a hard time imagining it on my Lund because you never see them other than with the classic red over the water line finish. <br /><br />I have a couple of questions:<br /><br />First, does anyone have pics of a similar boat that has been sandblasted and left natural rather than painted? <br /><br />Second, I've done limited research and will buy a sandblaster for work on the trailer. According to what I've read there is no problem sandblasting an aluminum hull so long as I use aluminum oxide media and extra care to avoid eroding the material by using too much pressure or an overly aggressive technique. Is this correct? Is there a better option?<br /><br />Third, is the cheapie-made-in-Korea/China/wherever sandblaster which draws the media from a bucket through a hose suitable for the hull and trailer work? I know - you get what you pay for - but I've had good luck with the cheapie HVLP spray gun I bought as it is good enough for the limited use I put on it. <br /><br />Fourth, I'll be replacing the floors, which are original to the boat and a bit soft. With the advent of maintenance free decking materials - for houses I mean - I'm thinking there must be an alternative to plywood suitable for boat flooring that won't deteriorate over time. Any thoughts or ideas along these lines?<br /><br />Fifth, there are several places where accessories, cleats as an example, have been attached using what appears to be stainless steel screws. I've read that that dissimilar materials will result in electrolysis. Is this of great concern for a boat used exclusively in fresh water? If it is, what is the best way to attach these accessories? <br /><br />Sixth, (and related to my fifth question) there are several holes in the hull near the gunwale that I plan to either seal with new aluminum rivets or stainless steel fasteners. I was thinking that an option might be to run a self-tapping screw into the hole, then grind both sides of the hull flush. I'd probably only do so if I decide to paint the outside of the hull and carpet the inside so the repair would be reasonably concealed. Any thoughts about this method? <br /><br />Sorry to ask so many different questions in the same post. Thanks in advance for any responses you can offer. The boat doesn't need much and I plan to complete it as a winter project, but I'm so fired up to work on it that it'll probably be done before the new year arrives.<br /><br />Link for project: http://www.shareaproject.com/projectThumbs.php?p=129

 

[swimmin' for shore]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

I won't answer all of this, but I'll answer a couple. <br />You can sandblast aluminum. I'm on my 2nd aluminum boat in the past 3 weeks-reselling them. I sandblast mine and paint. I don't think they look bad without paint, but I like paint on my topsides. <br />When you paint, use the red search button on top. Do a search for painting aluminum. Lots of good advice, such as the right paint, primer, and so forth.<br />The cheapy gun will work. An average gun, 12 bucks at my home depot, worked much better. Save yourself some time, for an extra couple of bucks. It's worth it. I promise.<br />Silica sand works fine. It's 30 grit, I believe. It'll leave you with a fairly smooth finish. It's slow, though. I mix mine. I buy some playground sand, run it through a collander, and mix it 50/50 with silica. It's much faster, and still leaves a smooth finish. The trailer will take something rougher. It isn't easy to find, but an autobody supplier can provide it. Sometimes, you find it at a lumber yard. It's iffy, though.<br />Don't drill a self-tapper through your hull. It's threaded, and threads are pretty thin protection. If you do that, and then deck it, it's really going to be a pain to fix when it leaks below your new deck. If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. Take it to you local welder. Let them tap a bead on there with a mig welder. Grind/sand it yourself. They won't charge much. I'm not against temporary fixes like 5200, especially if it's fishing season, but they aren't permanant. Welds and new aluminum are pretty permanant. They last. <br />Decks? Brace some sheet aluminum, perhaps. Brace below it, and it's a pretty lightweight deck that will last. Just a thought, though. I haven't done that before. Good luck.

 

[gewf631]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

I don't know what your time is worth, but I bought one of those cheepie blasters and don't think I'd use it on something like a trailer, let alone an entire boat.<br />I think there's places that could make fast work of the project, and save you a lot of headaches.<br /><br />There's been a lot of posts on flooring. I just used pressure treated plywood in my aluminum boat (18' bowrider). Others have coated the same with paint, or with epoxy. Again, all depends on how much time/money you can afford.<br /><br />If you're going to paint, I wouldn't go sandblasting the whole boat. Go over with sander, removing any loose paint, then prime and paint.<br /><br />For those holes, it again depends on how you want things to look. Rivets with some 5200 will seal, and look OK. Welding will certainly be more permenant, and with grinding/painting, you'll never see them. If they're not exposed to the waterline, it depends on how you want them to look.

 

[cpj]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

I used the Trex (fake wood) decking on my boat.It works ok,but you cant span very far without supporting it underneath.The plus side is it will likely never rot.

 

[lowshovel1]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

got to agree with Ed F, it will a good while with that type of blaster----I would do a local search on google,try media blasting. fast and reasonable! let us know how it go's.

 

[Terry Olson]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

Thanks for the advice fellas. <br /><br />Swimmin: I checked my Home Depot and they don't carry any sandblasting equipment. From what I've seen locally I have basically two choices. First, the cheapie gun that draws sand from a bucket or other non-pressurized container through a hose - $10.oo at my local cheap tool place. Sears carries a similar gun but it comes with a container that hangs on the wall and sells for around $50.oo. The second option involves a pressurized tank that feeds blasting media to the gun through a hose selling for around $100.oo. <br /><br />My sense is that the guns are about the same size leading me to think that they'll perform about the same although it makes sense that the second option will feed more reliably than the first. <br /><br />Anyway, what is the brand name of the gun that you use? How long do you think it would take to strip an entire trailer with it? <br /><br />Given the responses it sounds like it might be worth the expense to have the blasting done at a shop rather than doing it myself. <br /><br />I think I'll buy some aluminum rivets on ebay and install them in the holes. They're just below the top rail and this boat is all riveted anyway. Once painted I'm sure those rivets will go unnoticed among the rest, seal reasonably well, and be easier to carpet over than a screw and nut. Most guys wouldn't even bother, but I'm picky about that kind of thing I guess.<br /><br />I'll just drop in marine plywood when I do the floors. I'm not opposed, just wondering if there were better options given recent developments in maintenance free materials. <br /><br />Thanks again for the advice.

 

[cpj]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

Terry,one thing to consider is where oh where is all that sand going to go?Easy answer:EVERYWHERE!I have sand blasted a lift at work and the sand ends up in every nook and cranny that you can think of.So you might consider that when making your decision to do it yourself or let someone else do it.Also , you need a big air compressor becase running a blaster amounts to just letting all the air out a fast as you can from the hose.I would guess that you would have quite a fair amount of time in stripping your trailer,espeacially if you have to wait on your compressor to catch up with the gun.And not to mention explaining to your wife why all that sand is on her carpet.

 

[Terry Olson]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

Good point - I'd given that some thought, but probably not nearly enough.

 

[swimmin' for shore]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

Alright. I'm using a blaster right now from Sears, actually. It's a gun that draws from the bottom of a roll around cart and bucket. I don't know what they cost at Sears, but I can get just the gun for 12 bucks at Home Depot. It's sold as a sandblaster. I haven't used a media blaster. I'd love to hear from someone who has used that, and/or the pressure tank. This is brand new to me, but I love using the sandblaster. It leaves a nice clean surface for your coating. I have used it on my aluminum boat. It's not fast, but it's effective. <br />For your trailer-I did a 14' single axle trailer last night in about 6 hours. Down to bare metal. It had light rust and thin paint on it. It's spotless now, and ready for POR15 or paint. Again, it's not the fastest thing, but it's very clean and effective. The sand blaster that uses a pressure tank on ebay lists for 400+shipping, and advertises a sq. foot per minute. If I do another trailers, I'm going to go rent one and see how I like it, and then I'll buy it if it's worth the time. <br />Re: Sand going everywhere. Count on it. Close your garage door. Close your truck windows. Where a faceshield, and not just goggles. You're going to get pelted. Everything within 10 or 12 feet is going to get pelted. The sand doesn't bother me too much. We have a gravel driveway anyway, and it works out. Some people spread a big tarp and reuse the sand, though.

 

[Terry Olson]

Re: Looking for advice from those who've "Been there, done that".

I'm thinking that I'll get to this after the snow flies so the mess outside won't be much of a concern then. <br /><br />I'm thinking about renting one. I have a large compressor so buying one is a good option, but not at $400.oo - I won't use it that much, but at say $100.oo or less it would be worth the cost. <br /><br />Thanks again for the advice.